Why I Do Not Get Tea Parties

Today is the NYC Tea Party and a few of my republican friends are going. The tag line for it is that we have to curb wasteful spending. I'm cool with that, but, as I wrote on my Twitter last night, I wanted to know what spending is bad (I asked for line numbers). As of this writing I had not gotten a response. The reason why there was so much opposition to the clean energy bill that was passed last week is the 600 page porkbarrell spending amendment. No one I personally know read the bill. That's fine, but don't go on attacking something with which you haven't familiarized yourself.

The reason for porkbarrell spending is (wait for it) to get re-elected. Legislators know that if they do not help their constituents, they won't be re-elected (shocking, huh).

The Federal Budget for Fiscal Year 2008 included multimillion dollar spending (I forget the real number, but it was in the $100 million range) for the Army Corps of Engineers to drudge the Jones Inlet in New York. Who sponsored this legislation? Peter King (R-NY). The Jones Inlet is the collection of towns across the channel from Jones Beach, NY which consists of Lido Beach and Point Lookout. The total year-round residents total up to about 3000 (the summertime is double that) -the figures were estimated from the 2000 census. These two towns are beach communities.

Why do I give this example? Because I live in this area in the summer. In 2006, after 10 days of straight rain and a high tide, my basement was flooded (as well as just about everyone else's in the area). If it wasn't for the high tide and the ever growing coastal erosion, the septic systems would have brought the water down to the beach. It does not take a structural engineer to know that this flooding could have increased the possibility of mold growing as well as hurt the structural integrity of the houses. How was this solved? We got more sand on the beach.

If someone from, say Idaho, read the provision in the 2008 Budget and saw that millions of tax dollars are going to small beach communities, they would likely get rather angry.

Legislators know that 'bringing home the pork' will remind their constituents that the person that legislator got their friend employed at the new post office; their brother got his Social Security check; they protected the structural integrity of his house.

Is there wasteful spending? Yes. But not all spending is bad. Some actually helps the locals of that district. Unless you are from that area and understand the way of life there, you cannot be so critical of porkbarrell spending.

I will leave you with a quote from my NYC Politics professor from last night:
"Health Care reform will cost $1 Trillion over 10 years, but, in 6 months, we have given $1 Trillion to the banks."

The Contract of Marriage

Currently, I am watching Larry King. George Takei and his husband are discussing the recent California Supreme Court ruling on Prop 8. They made a good point, though, for over 20 years, they sleep in the same bed and kiss each other good night, it makes the biggest difference in the world on being married. They said that most would not understand the difference between personal commitment and marriage, but I have a good analogy: think of the difference between a pact that is sealed by a hand shake versus one that is done by a legally notarized contract -the later is simply a deeper bond. Though (at least in the State of New York) oral contracts can be legally binding, they are not as significant as a written document. Similarly, making a deal between loved ones verses one with the whole society makes a world of difference.

How to Save Money in These Trying Times (A Nerd's Perspective)

With the economy the way that it is, there is a easy way to save money that can range from a few hundred to a few million dollars. This would be great for so many organizations *cough* State of New York *cough*.

Open Source

switch to Linux, Apache HTTP Server, MySQL database, PHP, and Open Office.org. They are all open source (free) alternatives to proprietary products like those from Microsoft (and are traditionally more efficient).

Google

Google offers free versions of their products like GMail, Docs, and Chat that are specific for governments, schools, and nonprofits. With 7GB worth of memory for email, there is no reason to complain about server space limitations on emails.

Mozilla

Everyone with a braincell has realized why Firefox is superior to all other browsers and has switched. But, not enough use Thunderbird (an alternative to Outlook).

If you all are unfamiliar with any of the aforementioned products, Wikipedia them. Honestly, some organizations spend millions on program licenses, this could solve financial problems in just a few clicks. Sometimes I wonder why so many CIOs are so in love with Microsoft. I guess the reason is because they were raised on it (as was I). But with operating systems that cost $300, how can that devotion be justifiable? This economy has caused us all to make changes, why not change our favorite operating system or word processing program?

Explain This To Me

My dad did my taxes for me the other day. To put it simply, this will be the first year that I do not get money back due to the State of New York. Though I am a bit upset about it, I do not mind really. I am considered an upper-echelon on the NYS tax bracket. I believe that the rich should pay more in taxes. The rich have more to lose if the government does badly:

The rich are the CEO-types. A lot of their money is in the stock market. If the stocks do poorly, they lose money. If the stocks do poorly, who also loses money? The government (that is why NYS has so many problems right now). If the CEO-types stay responsible with their companies (unlike Enron or Bernie Madoff with other people's funds), that company does better, hence, the economy does better, hence the government does better. In all, it keeps everyone honest.

Now, I may not be a CEO-type, but if I espouse that the belief, I cannot complain about my tax returns. I debated this subject with some CR friends of mine and, even though they did not fall into my category (and also do not believe in a progressive tax), they did not agree with progressive taxes. I am saying that I am being hurt by a progressive tax and, yet, believe in it and they say it is wrong. It makes no sense to me. Someone explain it to me.

Now, I know conservatives believe that progressive taxes lead to communism/socialism, but are leftist ideals all that bad? Truly speaking, communism is the best form of government because it is a lack of government. As John Locke would put it, it is the State of Nature. Everyone serves everyone else; economy is based on bartering; but, there are no set rules and everyone is judge and jury for each other (and since there would be no unbiased punishments, government was created). As long as justice is truly fair, the State of Nature is perfect. It is the ideal "I scratch your back and you scratch mine." We all help each other for the betterment of society and we see that the better we work, the more we can accumulate in other goods and that wealth is shared. People argue that it goes against human nature, but if we are made in God's image, we are, by nature, good and loving. So, where does this selfishness come from? I don't know. Someone explain that to me as well.